Supervised probation face many challenges as the world of crime and caliber of criminals change constantly. Nevertheless, the variety and the volume of offenders makes it even more difficult to implement supervised probation (Siegel & Bartollas, 2014). In conjunction with the volume and variety of offenders, there is another contributing factor that creates a challenge called substance abuse. It is estimated that over half of all jails and a third of all prisons are due to offenders that have violated supervised probation and parole (Virlee, 2015). Common sense allows if you place someone on supervised probation for substance abuse, the chances are almost certain the individual will undergo some type of withdrawal as the detox plays its course. These situations can be harmful and even deadly without proper guidance and are estimated to be two to three times higher among probationers rather than nonprobationers based on surveys (Siegel & Bartollas, 2014). Mental health coincides with substance abuse in many cases and poses a challenge to many offenders on supervised probation as well as their probation officer. "Physical illness, serious mental illness, serious psychological distress, and depression are two to three times higher …show more content…
Local probation departments can impose their rules quicker and more flexible than larger probation departments such as state and federal departments (Siegel & Bartollas, 2014). However, a larger probation department has more resources in acquiring funds for their objectives than smaller departments (Virlee, 2015). The problem associated with larger probation departments are guidelines that are created and implemented among the probationers are sometimes unrealistic due to the negligence it has with a variety of offenders and the guidelines don't meet the requirements for each